You are responsible in doing things legally correct. Anything found here is a suggestion from people varying from experts to hobbyists. It is up to YOU to be legal.

Remember as you read this, I could be wrong. That semi famous YouSkooler probably did it wrong, too - I can think of one couple who just pushed along making mistake after mistake and now are paying for it on the road as they travelblog. So take what you read here as a guide but not as gospel. What is right for your build is right for your build. Just stay safe and legal.

Remember this - there is a reason why everyone does something the way they do. From beds in the back to insulation, certain things can't really be cheaped out on... unless it is a conscious decision to be different, or you are trying a new product that compares with the old way, odds are someone has tried it.

Ask questions. Someone, somewhere, has run into your issue. Hopefully one of the awesome people here will have the answer.

SHOULD I BUY A SKOOLIE?

If you are here, the answer is yes. ONE OF US! ONE OF US!

But... MAYBE not the first one you can afford. Do some research. Would you buy that 1984 used Toyota hatchback with 350,000 miles for 2200 bucks? It's in your price range, and it LOOKS good buuuuuut... there are a lot of buses out there, and yours is just waiting for you.

Why a Skoolie? Well, they are solid machines. They get the same MPG as an RV, and you can make yours the way YOU want, without cheap parts, an engine maxxed to its capacity, and a vehicle that can actually take a roll without turning into confetti.

Plus they are cheap to buy, and keep a better resale value.

This post is to try and have a one stop place for info. And if a post online is older than 2016, disregard anything it says. Even if it turns out to be right, it's best to think anything (Text based, video is fine, because you can see what might be outdated there such as how to install a VHS player) 2 years or older is outdated as a general rule of thumb. Except this one if it has been recently edited.

HOW DO I FIND A SKOOLIE?

DO I NEED A CDL?

Short answer: Most likely not, even with air brakes! Federally (USA), you do NOT, as long as you get rid of all the seats toot suite and your bus is under a certain weight unloaded. There is a state or two that is a little more restrictive on licensing, so if you are in the USA, check with the BMV/DMV or the web.

Is it a good idea to learn about the CDL process? Sure.

SHORT BUS, LONG BUS, AND YOU

Taken from a discussion between me and /u/ShortBus-Nectar. I was being my usual anti shortbus self, and ShortBus-Nectar had a thoughtful reply (edited by me):

I do agree that van body anythings are more expensive to do engine removals/overhauls than other vehicles with more accessible bays. This also applies to a truck vs van with the same driveline (Like F350 vs E350). I don't agree that van body fronts are expensive to maintain outside of the horror stories you hear about engine replacement.

... I said not all short or van-front buses can be covered under a blanket statement, I meant that not every engine/transmission combination is prone to massive services, and there are other considerations as well. I used the 6.0 as an example because basically every 6.0 on the road will eventually need heads, along with all the other stuff that needs to get replaced when they go (EGR cooler, etc) and its crazy expensive to do it all in one shot. Whereas something like a mechanical 7.3 or a 6.5 have issues, but not frequent services requiring the removal of the engine, followed by a build killing bill. Not trying to turn this into a discussion about which engine is better, I have no love for any manufacturer after spending 15 years as a tech.

You have another good point with the cost of tires on a larger bus. Likewise service for the brakes and basically everything else will have a higher cost in parts and labor. I do all my own work, but if I had to take it somewhere, I could go to basically any shop and they could service it. With a full size bus, most small shops will turn you away or might not have the tools to do the job. Manufacturers in the "light truck" industry are not required to provide service information to companies like Alldata, Mitchell, etc so most shops will have zero technical information to aid in diagnostics. Heavy duty shops tend to charge more per hour than general service shops.

I'm not saying go out and buy any van body you see, but I wouldn't avoid checking them out.

TIRES, RUST, AND YOU.

Rust is bad, but not as bad as rust holes. A rusty floor takes 24 hours of work to fix up. But that means you have to remove your floor, which means you have to look under the bus with a strong flashlight.

If you are buying an already converted bus, and want to know how the underbody was when they purchased it, grab a magnet on a stick, and sweep the floor from below. Bondo isn't magnetic.

Rust holes take days, unless you know how to weld. Bondo smells funky.

Big bus tires are expensive. If you can find a good bus under $5000 with excellent tires, you are basically buying tires with a free bus on them.

This doesn't count for short bus van front styles.

HOW DO I CHECK MY POTENTIAL BUS FOR STUFF?

/u/Ashandrik put together an awesome post on bus kickin' for when you are pickin'. Check it here:

It seriously is an amazing post on what you want to do with a bus before buying it.

WHAT ENGINE? WHAT TRANSMISSION? WHAT DO I NEED TO DRIVE PIKES PEAK?

Honestly, the only engine to stay away from is the Ford Powerstroke 6.0 (short bus). All other forms of the 6.0 are fine, if a little wimpy. Pushers push, are quieter, and don't haul things as well. Front end engines haul well and handle a bit better.

The transmission is all about what you want to do with it. Mountains? Flat? Haul? Odds are, there is no one perfect transmission for your needs. Be aware of that. Google is your friend here - remember, everyone either loves or hates your transmission of choice, so no matter what you pick, someone will say it's terrible. Look for what's good about it, and decide from there.

ALRIGHT I HAVE A SKOOLIE, NOW WHAT?

TIME T'PLAY! Start thinking hard on your design, and where you are going to put the remarkably large amount of waste product that it will generate. Seats, metal, insulation, bits and bobs, screws, lenses, lightbulbs, skin and blood, and whatnot.

Seriously consider not putting in sideways facing seats. In the USA they don't really care (unless you are or have a child), but in other countries, riding on a sideways seat is illegal!

A lot of old posts that spread false or misleading information still exists. The only place that will have the answer is your local D/BMV or its website. If you are not satisfied with the answer you get from the person on the other end of the phone, look up your revised code. Here's Washington state's.

REGISTERING MY SKOOLIE AS A MOTOR HOME

INSURANCE!

You CAN get insurance.

First off, only ask for insurance on what the title says it is. If it says commercial right now, get commercial. If it says RV, get RV. Do NOT say, "Oh it's a bus that I am converting in my spare time." Insurance agents get wobbly with what may be's. Just show the title, and say this is what I have, this is what I want. Get the bus converted, get the title changed, get the insurance you want.

You may have to investigate getting the bus titled in Vermont as an RV. See a few lines above.

Sidenote: if this will be your primary residence, let the insurance provider know. Especially if you bought the bus with a mortgage (which you can do for primary residences!). If they pull some BS about "You need another vehicle, this can't be your home AND be a primary way to drive places" drop them and move elsewhere. They are not right.

DESIGN AND DESTROY!

Know your state laws re: bus color and lights. Know your state laws re: seatbelts (resource here https://rvshare.com/blog/things-need-know-rv-seat-belt-laws/.) Consider how passengers will travel. Sideways seats are not good for kids, and may be illegal to use with safety seats. It is up to you to be legal.

SEATBELTS NEED TO BE CONNECTED TO THE FRAME (or a seat designed to hold belts from a seat maker). This is where reusing the bolts from the bus seats can be a great idea.

Measure your bus. Use graph paper to start a build design, and remember:

Also, remember comfort for when you are traveling. Sitting side mounted for hundreds of miles is exhausting on bulky wooden homemade seats. And really, recycled bus seats are not comfy sideways. And like I said, it's not a great idea in general, and wrong for kids. Lap belts sideways in a forward facing accident change the shear rates and really... bench seating is not comfy for rides. Consider doing it somehow else. I know, it really messes up the space on the bus.

Are you going to bring your bus to bare rims and metal? That usually is the best way to go - it allows you to see holes, places that need attention, and then allows you to fill in insulation as needed. You also get rid of some of the disgusting materials that have been subject to kids. And, as we all know, kids be gross.

Don't be afraid of cutting holes in your bus. You are gonna need to for plumbing, and power. Remember to think carefully on roof cuts.

Any cut can be fixed with welding, but remember to try and get a welder to fix all at once. Find a local fabricator and talk with them, unless you know how to weld, or have a welding buddy. And practice safe welding.

If you decide to remove the rear heating fan, know that they are looped into your engine system. You will need to examine the system, and be prepared to loop the lines near the front. If your bus is old or rusty down below, wear good eye protection or a face shield. And watch out for coolant.

Check in with your local community college or technical school if you need welding done.

MUST HAVE TOOLS

Impact Drill. Chop saw. Hammer. Angle grinder. With these, you can build a skoolie to rival the gods! Well, you can do most of the work. I once saw a family using handsaws to cut things.

My goodness.

A tool I love that isn't required but is nifty, is a pocket jig. Also, a bit that extends and bends for your drill - helps you get to hard to reach places.

Battery operated tools can travel with you, but you need to buy ones with good batteries. If your batteries don't hold a charge, buy a new battery. If it still doesn't hold a charge, you need a new tool. Modern battery powered items are amazing. Costco has a greenworks combo (Impact driver and drill) for 100 bucks that alone each part would cost 80 bucks. Including two batteries.

Also, buy tons of drill bits. And if you have issues removing bus screws in the ceiling or walls? Try a square bit.

Self tapping screws are worth it, too.

WOOD?

Wood. I used 2x3s to cut a bit of weight. You use what you feel right with. You CAN use metal framing.

BUILDING YOUR DESIGN (BUILDING BOXES AND YOU)

Every carpenter I talked to about skoolie builds (one of them) said that every piece of furniture starts life as a box. Get used to building boxes. Boxes can become chairs, beds, shelves, tesseracts - the possibilities are endless.

Also, instead of romex wire, people tend to use extension cords for wire runs. There is talk of extension cords being more robust in a vibrating world. I use both, never had an issue myself. That doesn't mean much, really... but just know either is viable for a time.

Those two things are great, used in conjunction with butt connectors you should have code worthy splices. And lots of electrical tape.

When it comes to batteries, it's all about uniformity and amp hours. There's a lot of complicated math that talks about power usage and what not, and honestly, I am terrible at it.

Lead acid batteries put off gasses when charging. Deep cycle batteries are what you want, and this is an area you shouldn't cheap out on (but you can!). LiPo batteries are both amazing and can be dangerous. Your house batteries (those are your power my stuff batteries, not the power my bus type) need to be safely contained. It's a good idea to have a fire extinguisher nearby rated for electrical fires.

"I used a 200A Cole Hersee Battery Isolator Solenoid. You can use anything similar, but make sure the amperage capacity is higher than your alternator puts out (my alternator was rated at 160A). 160A is really common on skoolies, but some buses that had a lot of accessories in them (charter buses mostly) have two alternators at 240A each.

I wired the control contacts (the ones on the top) to switch on my bus' control panel. You don't want the bus trying to use the house batteries to start from. You'll damage them. So, with the switch, I can turn it on after the bus has started. You could also wire it into a 12V source that is only one when the bus is running, but I didn't want the batteries connected until a few minutes after the bus had started and the starter batteries were topped off. This way I never have to worry about any deep draws between the starter batteries or the house batteries.

The other benefit of the switch is that if I'm ever in an emergency situation where I decide damaging my house batteries to get the bus started is worth it, I still have that option. I also let the house batteries top off the starter batteries if I sit for a while. If I have a net gain of solar or if I'm on shore power, I can turn on the switch for a couple hours to act as a battery maintainer."

/u/Carolina_tiny_homes suggests a DC to DC inverter. They are expensive, but will extend the life of the battery and pay for itself in no time.

Depending on your power usage, you may not need house batteries. It's a discussion for another day.

CAPTURING THE SUN AND MAKING IT WORK FOR YOU

Solar power is free energy. Setting up Solar is not. It's cheaper to build your own system, but easier to buy pre-built. No matter what system you go with, there will be positives and negatives.

Hey, chiming in here for the Solar aspect of things. We make solar DC appliances, so refrigerators that'll operate on 12V/24V. In terms of power loads and the do's and don'ts of solar.

Rule of thumb. If you can turn it off, do it. That's how you save power and passive draining. Ideally have a switch that takes it off the breaker.

Things you can't control or use a lot... try to see if there's a DC version.

Using an Inverter does get you AC power, but at the cost of 15%-20% energy loss during the inversion process.

This is why we made DC refrigerators, depending on where you're at, you can recover the consumption for all our appliance through a single 200W panel over a day.

...Lights and even a TV doesn't take too much juice out of a solar setup. Solar doesn't have to cost an arm and a leg. It doesn't even need to be overbearing, know and understand what your needs are and then work from the consumption up.

(( check out www.c4pinc.com for more info, or the blog for more specifics ))

WATER? HOT AND COLD, WASTE AND CLEAN

Plumbing. It's simple, good water comes in, bad water goes out. Like the tides. Water can be hot or cold. You can use a propane tank to heat your water. You can go with a tank or tankless. With the water flow, tankless may be the way to go, especially with space issues.

You are going to have leaks. Vibration will cause joints to shift. Make them easy to get to.

Toilets in a skoolie - if you do traditional black water toilet, it is just like putting one in your house. If you use an expensive but well worth it composting toilet, plumbing is not needed. You can even use a bucket and Walmart bags and Ice Tea bottles.

Just be aware, getting sick in a composting toilet is a special kind of treat.

GREY WATER, BLACK WATER AND WHY PEEING IN AN OPEN TUBE IS BAD

I talk about this disaster all the time. One of the earliest skoolie builds I ever saw had a pvc pipe that went directly through the floor and dumped onto the ground below. It was in the middle of the bus. People used it to pee directly out of the bus, parked or while driving.

THIS IS NOT GOOD.

illegal.

urine loves to mess with metal. Splashing happens. So plan to have places for waste product to go, and know that your grey water tank (Soapy water, shower water, stuff like that) has to be slightly higher than your black tank so accidental back fill doesn't flow into it.

When you do a water dump, you do your grey water first, then close it and do your black water second. You don't want black water to backfill your grey... because odor.

I will try and find a good resources for grey/black/drinking tanks here. But really, they are easy to do. Mounting is interesting, and you may wish to think of mounting (or cutting holes) these BEFORE you finish the floor. Or at least putting the mounts in, if you end up going through the floor.

Here's a post I did when a user wasn't so sure of a bucket full of poopgoop:

Composting toilets are a weird thing. In the USA we are used to flushing away all effluvia - anything else is just not done.

Even holes in the ground are suspect (like camping at a state park) and portapotties are just NASTY.

Even portapotties have fluid in them. So what is a composting toilet?

Well, I can't answer that easily. But I can link you to a blog I found that answers questions you may have:

Wanna make your own composting toilet? Check out what /u/MajerGlazer says:

"Heres a blog post I did for our setup. After 8 months of use, it held up great. We mounted it outside our vehicle (trailer tongue) for storage and transport but overall, limited smells were given off. We chose coconut fibers bought on Amazon since it was way easier to store and does the same as peat/sawdust. It came in small compressed bricks that you add a small amt of water and fluff and presto, you have your cover.

Use a bag in your setup, it will make your #2 cleanups infinitely easier. We also liked have an external liquids collection to keep things neat. We could connect the bottle (any size gatorade or juice container) and use inside but a lot of the time would drain to mother nature. Feel free to ask me anything.

Also, my original design had a small flaw when men were using the potty. The funnel worked great for ladies but some man parts were cramped near the funnel. I would have mounted a bit lower in the bin to give the parts some space."

Here's a youtube video of the awesome /u/thehudallas and their composting toilet... and head woes (there's a naval pun there, I think).

HEATING AND COOLING?

A/C is one of the most difficult things to have when boondocking. Heating is easier, due to the fact that it can be done with propane heaters. More to come when I collect resources!

Fans are easier and can do quite well.

INSULATION!

Blown or pink stuff? Rigid or foam? How about sound insulation? Links coming!

FYI, larger bus builders tend to go with blown stuff.

I will be testing some recycled denim R6.7 for sound dampening soon. I will get back to this with my results!

KITCHEN?

Do you really need large ranges and stuff? Can you get by with butane cooktops? Propane? Electrical? Induction?

I personally use a coleman stove and a hot plate in my skoolie. I have a butane burner and a rice cooker as well. I may switch the hot plate for my induction unit - so as you can see it's really up to you.

Can you use dorm fridges? Chest fridges? Freezers? More to come later! Experts suggest using DC powered appliances without an inverter so you don't lose power in the conversion.

PROPANE, AND PROPANE ACCESSORIES

Propane is a lot like plumbing, and you test for leaks the same way - system under pressure! Each joint needs easy access, and to test a joint, you put soapy water on it and look for bubbles. Run your propane to your kitchen and hot water tank. And furnace. It will most likely run in parallel with your water.

Here's a skoolie conversion that does the propane - they are fun to watch, but I wouldn't call them experts. It's a great jumping off place, especially if you watch all their videos. They learn so much by mistake, which is how many of us learn.

Propane pitfalls by /u/chongolio. A very good read that most of us wouldn't think of.

WIRELESS INTERNET AND YOU

Alright, so how to do you get your internets on the road? Well, all phone companies have some sort of option, and you really need to be careful with your usage and be aware of what is available. Verizon is expensive, T-mobile doesn't exist in some states, and the rest are... the rest. HOWEVER...

PAINTING THE ROOF

The best thing to do is paint your roof white. There are those that think the temperature changes are negligible, and sure, we are dealing with a game of inches. But when you are looking at a difference of 4-10 degrees, it can make a HUGE difference in your power usage in cooling or heating.

So paint your roof. Use silicone or latex. Make sure it is RV roof paint, though general white paint can work. Thanks to /u/carolina_tiny_homes and /u/Ashandrik for these great write ups.

Not a lot going on on the back end here - discussions about adding new moderators when we hit 10,000 users, scratching our heads and wondering about automoderator (ok, there's no we, it's just me), and reading the generally good natured posts here on our subreddit.

We've talked a lot about heating our buses for the winter here in the USA/North America. I also outed myself as having WAY too many ways to cook things for my bus, most of which I COULD use but really, don't (wood fired portable pizza oven, anyone?).

There's a lot of great content rumbling around, and I understand that video blogs aren't everyone's thing. But the great thing is we have all kinds of content here. I personally enjoy all content (usually) and am just glad stuff is getting posted here!

I have a question for you all, one that will probably keep me up for a while.

Every once in a while, we get users here who have an agenda. They aren't skoolie agendas, but this is the platform upon which they stake their claim. It's rare, very rare, thankfully, but someone will come in with a chip on their shoulder and bus related or not, they will cause issues.

When someone like this, whos reddit history is full of aggression, hate, and anger, comes to our subreddit, what do you think I should do? Let's say their post is not terrible, but it does raise red flags. Maybe it's one of those, "Are they really being this way, or am I misreading it? Or are they doing that on purpose thing so they can play victim if someone reacts?"

In moderator support circles, the general mentality is, "Ban 'em ASAP." I feel uncomfortable driving the ban bus even with clear and obvious reasons, so to have someone who seems spoiling for a fight about issues that aren't skoolie related take a seat up front bothers me.

(So you know, back in the dark ages I admin'd a game server and weilded the banhammer as needed, sometimes gleefully - I am not ban shy, just cognizant of the trust a community has in its moderators. I do not wish to abuse that trust.)

But sitting there and seeing a post that may or may not be disparaging and "not nice" bothers me too. So what should I do? I don't want to start banning people because I think they are unpleasant. That way lies madness and frustration.

I bring this to you all because I would like to defer to the group. We are small enough that such a thing can be done - the silent majority isn't too silent or misrepresented. Or at least, I tell myself that.

I know eventually I will have to make the tough decisions with the help of a smaller crew of people once we get large enough.

I know this for truth:

spam posts from spam accounts will not be tolerated. Spam posts from active users will be dealt with on a case by case basis.

as we get larger, less on topic posts will be less tolerated (which is a shame in many ways, but hopefully other content will prevail)

being less than nice will always be actionable. Blunt is okay, grouchy but polite is good. Being consistently jerky will get you a seat on the ban bus.

That's all I got this week. I am really happy you are all a laid back bunch, and seem to appreciate my candidness. You make being a mod here really easy - and once we hit 10,000 subs I am hoping to add more like minded people with /u/jaysedai's blessing!

As always feel free to reach out here with thoughts, comments, errata, and suggestions. This is an open forum post for just about anything. Just...

Long story short, i was going to buy a new (to me) pickup for my side hustle (wood working and house repair) but when I looked, I found out I could buy a bus with the same engine, transmission and rear end as the ford I wanted (Ford F-250 with the 7.3) for less than half what the truck would cost me.

So I looked into used short buses and found out that people convert them into campers and all kinds of stuff. I figured since you all go to much greater extremes than I plan to, you could tell me everything I want to know and more.

Does anyone have experience with the ford e450s? Preferably the 10 seat model.

Can anyone link me a good picture or even video of all the controls and dash setup in said bus? I have been looking around and can’t find much.

What are some standard mechanical issues they are likely to have? I’m a former mechanic, just need to know what I’m dealing with here.

Has anyone taken out the back two rows to create storage space? Like shelves or such.

I'm planning to live in a skoolie this summer (short-term) and I don't know if I should take an instant pot (additionally used as pan if necessary), or a stove. I currently have both an instant pot and a propane and butane stove. I also have a charcoal/propane grill. If I do bring a stove, what pans or pots have the most applications?

Hey gang, I'm gearing up to put solar on a conversion after a failed try. The last attempt we made, the batteries blew out for some reason. We got new batteries, but what went wrong the first time? Was it just bad batteries? Did we mount something where it shouldn't have gone? We followed the directions online and are pretty confident we did everything correctly but...

I see so many busses with magnificent woodworking, roof raises, and insulation added. And then, I spot the original aluminum frame single pane bus windows. Can anyone comment on their experience of actually living/operating with those windows in cold weather for extended periods?

It seems to me that wood would be soaking up the moisture accumulation, which long term isn't good.

To kick off, here's my experience. The single pane glass gets a bit of moisture each night even with air conditioning and heat managing the humidity, the other windows which are double pane still sweat on the frames. By early afternoon everything has dried up, but I still have to clean the frames often to prevent mildew from growing.

Unless I'm missing something, there's a lot of pinterest/instagram worthy busses that are going to turn into black mold nightmares in short order if they are really lived in during cold seasons.

We are rocketing into the holiday months, already almost surpassing Feb. of last year with page visits. Very cool!

Had an interesting week! Lots of great content and discussion, from burning poop to the nitty gritty of design.

Shower pans to propane installation, to the big one, CARB violations.

Look, if there is one thing that is most important to walk away from this subreddit with, it's KNOW YOUR LOCAL LAWS. Especially if you live in a state where being alive has been known to cause cancer.

There are a few people, over the time I have been here, that have forgotten the most powerful tool in our Skoolie toolbox: Google (or duckduckgo, but not BING). Google your state's RV laws, and from there check out the D/BMV. Heck, even give the DMV or BMV a call and talk to the generally nice people there.

On a side note - please, if you are a skoolie member, please remember that we want to stay legal and safe and sanitary. It's weird, because a lot of skoolie people want to be more green, but in many ways might not realize how un-green they are. Such as the CARB situation in California - the goal is to make a diesel engine more green, which is a laudable goal, right?

But to be green is to pay more, and a lot of skoolie people are shoestring budget. So what can be done is behavior. Being cognizant of ground water means no grey water dumping willy nilly. Being aware of the bugs you can travel with if you move firewood around. Things such as this.

A lot of us, myself included, feel good about being greener. Leaving places better than we found them. But I find myself sometimes doing decidedly ungreen things, such as using disposable water bottles all over the place.

It's a sobering thought to think of.

Ultimately, no matter where you stand on the idea of a greener planet, let's leave the place better than we found it, eh?

SKOOLIE LIFE!
Have a school bus that you have or are currently converting into something else (usually an RV)? Got questions about something strange? Wanna brag about how you did what you did? This is where you can talk about it, discuss how it's done and show off your results!
See you on the road!